Mixing and dispensing cap

ABSTRACT

Cap for mixing and dispensing a plurality of liquids, comprising a conical casing and a succession of transverse discs spaced axially of the casing, the spaces between the discs being connected by angularly spaced peripheral notches in the discs.

United States-Patent mi 3,593,964

[7 21 Inventor Bruno Morane v [56] Reference Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS[21 I Appl. No 777,598 i 1,491,049 4/1924 Llchtenthaeler 259/18 [22}Filed Nov. 21,1968

3,223,388 12/1965 Knox 259/4 [45] Patented July 20, 1971 [73] AssignDonal 3,361,412 l/l968 Cole .1 259/4 Paris France p 3,460,149 9/1969Blood et al 259/4 X [32] Priority May 7, 1968 v FOREIGN PATENTS [33]France j 1,222,454 8/1966 Germany 259/4 [31 l 150763 PrimaryExaminer-James Kee Chi Attorney-Holcombe, Wetherill &- Brisebois [54]MIXING AND DISPENSING CAP 5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figs. 1 t, w y [52] U.S.Cl .J 259/4; ABSTRACT: Cap for mixing and dispensing a plurality of T138/38, 138/42 liquids, comprising a conical casing and a Succession oftrans- [S l Int. Cl 1301f 15/00 verse discs spaced axially of thecasing, the spaces between the [50] Field of Search 259/4, 18, discsbeing connected by angularly Spaced, peripheral notches 36 138/38, 42 inthe discs. J:

MIXING AND DISPENSING CAP When certain fluids which have been packagedunder pressure are dispensed after passing through a valve, a certaindelay must occur before they are finally released. This is particularlythe case with cosmetic products, when it is necessary to make sure thata plurality of fluids which are being simultaneously dispensed areadequately mixed, or to allow time for a desired reaction to take place,to produce for example a change of state, in particular when the fluidsare to form a gel.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple andinexpensive device capable of producing the above result.

The invention relates to a new article of manufacture which consists ofa dispensing cap for a dispenser of one or more fluids, essentiallycharacterized by the fact that it comprises, preferably inside a conicalcasing, supplied at one end by a fluid-dispensing valve and open at itsother end, a central rod positioned axially within the casing, said rodcarrying a plurality of transverse discs, each having a surface equal inarea to the transverse section of the casing at the level of that disc,and each of which is provided with a notch connecting the spaces betweenthe discs to each other, said notches being angularly s'paced withrespect to each other about the central rod.

ln a preferred embodiment of the invention the dispensing, cap comprisesa frustoconicalcasing and the lowest disc in the column has no notch.The fluids to be dispensed enter the cap through an axial channel insaid central rod, which opens into the space between the lowermost discand the next. The notches in adjacent discs are angularly spaced from 90to l80 apart. The notches have a substantially constant crosssectionalarea, even though the diameters of the discs decrease from the bottomtoward the top.

In order that the invention may be better understood, one embodimentthereof will now be described, purely by way of example, with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an axial sectional view through the dispensing cap accordingto the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the central rod and the column ofdiscs carried thereby.

Referring to the drawings, it will be seen that reference numeral 1indicates the casing of the cap, taken as a whole. This cap comprises atits base an internally threaded cylindrical recess In by means of whichthe cap may be screwed onto a mixing chamber supplied by a valve whichdispenses a plurality of fluids which form a gel when mixed together. Atthe and is fixed to a central rod 5 having a height slightly less thanthat of the conical portion lb. In the specific embodiment il lustrated,there are six notched discs distributed over the axial length of therod. These discs have been assigned reference numerals 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d,6e, 6f. The recess la is connected to the space between discs 4 and 60by a passage 7 in the rod 5, which terminates in two transverse orifices8.

The disc 6a is provided with an arcuate notch 90, while the disc 6b isprovided with a like notch 9b and the disc 60 with a notch 90, Thenotches 9a, 9b, and 9c have increasingly large radii in order, that theymay have substantially identical areas despite the progressive decreasein the diameters of the discs. The discs 6d, 62 have notches 10d, ll0a,formed by cutting off a portion of the disc. The disc 6f is providedwith two diametrically opposed notches formed by cuts made along twochords. The disc 6f therefore appears as a simple bar having the widthof the central rod at the point where they intersect.

When the recessed end la of the casing is screwed onto the mixingchamber, and this chamber is supplied by opening the dispensing valve,the fluid under pressure fills up the free space inside the recess la,and enters the passage 7, which it leaves through the orifices 8, tofill the space between the disc 4 and the disc 6a, after which it passesthrough the notch 9a, fills the space between discs 6a and 6b, passesout through the notch 91:, and thus, step by step, fills all the spacesbetween the discs by passing from one to the next through the notches inthe discs.

The fluid is thus constrained to follow a spiral path around the rod 5,which increases the length of time between the moment when the twofluids are first mixed in the mixing chamber and that at which they aredelivered to the user through the orifice 2 of the cap according to theinvention, and prevents any undesirable stagnation in the volumesdefined between successive discs. 7

A particular advantage of this cap resides in the fact that, since itmay be molded from plastic material, it is inexpensive to manufactureMoreover, it can be easily taken apart, because the column 3 is onlyheld in the conical casing part lb by friction between the discs andthat casing. The column may be forced out by simply applying pressure tothe uppermost disc 6]" through the orifice 2, so that the cap may beeasily cleaned.

, It will of course be appreciated that the cap may be modified as todetail withoutthereby-departing from the basic principles of theinvention.

What I claim is:

l. Spout for dispensing fluids comprising a hollow casing open at bothends and decreasing in diameter from one end toward the other, a centralrod extending axially of said casing, which rod also decreases indiameter from said one end of said casing to the other, aplurality oftransverse plates spaced axially along said rod and dividing said easinginto a series of chambers, and at least one opening in each plateconnecting each of said chambers to the next chamber in said series, theopenings in each of a succession of said plates being angularly spacedfrom the openings in adjacent plates so as to constrain material passingfrom one end of said cap to the other to follow a tortuous path.

2. A spout as claimed in claim 1 comprising an additional imperforateplate carried by said rod and closing the large end of said hollowcasing, said central rod being pierced by an axial channel opening onopposite sides of said additional plate.

3. A spout as claimed in claim 1 in which the center of the openings insuccessive plates are spaced from to from the'preceding notches.

'4. A spout as-claimed in claim 1 in which said openings aresubstantially uniform in cross-sectional area.

S. A spout as claimed in claim lin which said rod is provided at thelarger end of said casing with an axial channel, and at least twotransverse holes opening into said channel.

1. Spout for dispensing fluids comprising a hollow casing open at bothends and decreasing in diameter from one end toward the other, a centralrod extending axially of said casing, which rod also decreases indiameter from said one end of said casing to the other, a plurality oftransverse plates spaced axially along said rod and dividing said casinginto a series of chambers, and at least one opening in each plateconnecting each of said chambers to the next chamber in said series, theopenings in each of a succession of said plates being angularly spacedfrom the openings in adjacent plates so as to constrain material passingfrom one end of said cap to the other to follow a tortuous path.
 2. Aspout as claimed in claim 1 comprising an additional imperforate platecarried by said rod and closing the large end of said hollow casing,said central rod being pierced by an axial channel opening on oppositesides of said additional plate.
 3. A spout as claimed in claim 1 inwhich the center of the openings in successive plates are spaced from90* to 180* from the preceding notches.
 4. A spout as claimed in claim 1in which said openings are substantially uniform in cross-sectionalarea.
 5. A spout as claimed in claim 1 in which said rod is provided atthe lArger end of said casing with an axial channel, and at least twotransverse holes opening into said channel.